Depending on what part of the country you are in, something like this can go for $60 to $120 per square foot and that is without any equipment or sound treatments.

If you're planning on an acoustically solid studio (floating walls, floors and ceiling, etc.,) you're probably looking at somewhere around $140 - $180 per square foot...

Much of this depends on how serious you are about your studio's functionality...If you don't mind your neighbors disturbing your sonic space (and, if your neighbors don't mind you disturbing theirs) you might be able to lower the cost a bit, but your studio's capabilities will be diminished to some extent...

Does your budget include equipment (hardware, software, wiring, mics, mic stands, cables, wall treatments, lighting, speakers, power amps, headphones, etc.,)?

At some point in your building process (depending on local building codes and regulations) you will probably need to have a licensed architect submit a floorplan (and structural, plumbing & electrical schematics) to the proper authorities in order to get approval for a building permit...Even if local regulations don't require a building permit for you to make alterations to your home, make sure that you aren't violating any clauses in your homeowner's insurance policy (check with your agent and, if necessary, attach a rider to your policy to include additional liability and comprehensive coverage for your studio's assets)...

*LOL* Did I just advise an attorney about insurance coverage? *LOL*

A couple of you have mentioned PM(ing) you to get in contact - what is that?

The budget does not include any actual music gear - just the building of the place.

I'm thinking I'll probably want to float the floor, but maybe not the walls and ceiling. I want isolation and a great sounding room, but not for more than $25,000 or so. I can't even justify more than that to myself, let alone my wife (haha)!

As far as permits go, I've already called some government types in KC and got the general run down. Once I actually get someone to do the plans, I'll get all the nitty-gritty in writing. Point is, yes, I'm gonna get permits and everything.

As far as the bathroom goes, I think we may have it set up for one (with a hole in the cement slab), but not build one right away. I'll get that put in a few years or something.

thanks for the input everyone

You're going to float a floor on the second floor of a garage that will have no elevator or restroom? Would it be possible to build the studio on level ground - maybe behind the garage?

That's smart about the slab and the hole. Running the line is the most expensive part, but you will need that hole. ;)

As to PMing.. I dunno, you have to add me to your address book here, and send me a message, but instead just email me from my website:
http://noisevault.com/studio/contact.html

_oh_ and most likely you will want to put the PVC in the hole and out till it gets out from under the slab and cap it at both ends. But i imagine you figured this already.

Also remember the possible need for a bathroom. Even if this is a personal studio you might like the ability to go wee wee without walking to the house. ;)

My wife wouldn't let me put a bathroom in, she was afraid she'd never see me! ;-)

I'm thinking I'll probably want to float the floor, but maybe not the walls and ceiling. I want isolation and a great sounding room, but not for more than $25,000 or so. I can't even justify more than that to myself, let alone my wife (haha)!

barthowk,

Floating the floor but not the walls and ceiling is practically useless...The idea of "floating" is to separate each structural element from the ones adjoining it...This is to diminish (or practically eliminate) any structural vibrations being transferred from one room to another...The simple analogy is that floating is used to keep outside sounds (vibrations) from coming in, and inside sounds (vibrations) from going out...

Another critical element to this factor is HVAC ductwork...If your control room and your studio area (iso booths, etc.,) are serviced by connected ducts, you will never achieve total isolation...Remember, audio waves are vibrations of the airspace within your listening area and, if you have open vents in your control room that are connected to open vents in your studio, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what the results will be...

I'm inclined to agree with Noah 330 (if you have the property footage needed)...You'd be much better off building a free-standing structure behind the garage...There are, however, a few things to consider...probably your main concern will be how this additional structure could affect future resale value (and, perhaps your property taxes)...

The bathroom issue presents a different set of problems...Running water & flushing toilets produce a lot of noise...Water pipes are notoriously noisy...You also need to consider the (hopefully, unlikely) event that a water pipe could burst and wreak havoc on your studio...

This can be, somewhat, circumvented by having the physical location of the bathroom situated somewhere near the rear of the control room part of your structure (in an exterior area so that you don't have any water pipes situated in acoustically sensitive interior areas)...

Here's an section from a design for a home/residential studio that I've been working on that my wife and I are planning to build in the near future...



Note that there is complete separation from the control room, yet there is still easy access to the bathroom from the control room...The fixtures that require water are all located on an exterior wall, meaning the water supply never has to be fed through ceilings or interior walls (what isn't shown in this sectional is that the hot water heater is located in the garage's utility room which is less than 30' away from the bathroom)...

You can build a nice and very functional structure with a $25K budget, but it's probably not going to be nearly as large (or as acoustically "isolated") as you think it will be unless you do a lot of the finishing work and manual labor yourself (or, you can have a "barn-raising" weekend and invite friends who know how to do this kinda stuff)...

Good luck on this project! Do it right and you'll get years of enjoyment from it!

Sounds like I'll need to float the walls and ceilings too then.

To clear up some possible confusion, our house does NOT currently have a garage. We're thinking that building a garage with a studio above will raise resale value because the studio can be listed as "mother-in-law quarters," or something that can be rented out. The backyard doesn't have enough room to build both a garage and a separate studio...

All the DIY advice is well received. It just is a little discouraging because I'm so ignorant about stuff like that. I'm afraid I'll never have time to actually do music while I take the time to learn all this crap!

A vote to keep it single story. I think that you should build a unit that can be easily converted back to a garage. A decent sized single-story garage can barely be built for $25k doing everything yourself. Keep the framing conventional so that you don't have to hire a structural engineer. Also - HVAC will will be a much bigger deal; a second story on a garage with vaulted ceilings - hotter than hell.

Also, as someone mentioned - check out your property tax situation. Putting in plumbing and other stuff that make it livable will add to your bill. (Well, in my county it does). I would bury any future plumbing and add it later without permits.

One last thing from my experience building stuff like this - Calculate your cost, and then add another 20% to get the real cost.

ORIGINAL: barthowk

Sounds like I'll need to float the walls and ceilings too then.

To clear up some possible confusion, our house does NOT currently have a garage. We're thinking that building a garage with a studio above will raise resale value because the studio can be listed as "mother-in-law quarters," or something that can be rented out. The backyard doesn't have enough room to build both a garage and a separate studio...

That being the case, I would recommend you forget the "garage" idea and concentrate your efforts and budget on building a functional structure that can later (like, when you decide to sell) can be converted into a garage or "mother-in-law" quarters...

Building a second-story studio (properly designed for acoustic isolation) above a garage will increase the load-bearing factors of your garage's framing structure anyway (ergo, a simple garage will now cost about twice as much)...You could still build it with a vaulted ceiling that could easily be converted into attic space when you put the house on the market and convert the studio into a garage (much easier to do than the opposite)...

One thing that you haven't mentioned is whether or not you plan on physically attaching the garage/studio structure to your existing home or if it would be a free-standing building...You also haven't mentioned the property dimensions that you have to work with...

All the DIY advice is well received. It just is a little discouraging because I'm so ignorant about stuff like that. I'm afraid I'll never have time to actually do music while I take the time to learn all this crap!

I would be open to consulting with you (for a nominal--and I do mean nominal--fee) and even provide you with basic floorplan designs using AutoCAD that you could then present to the architect or contractor of your choice for further development...

I'm not trying to solicit business from you, I'm merely offering to help out (but I really don't have the time to do it completely pro bono)...

If you're interested you can email: marscomplex@bellsouth.net

Would building just the 1 story studio lower my costs below the $25,000 range? I'm guessing not from what you guys are saying. Also, it seems counter-productive to build this thing with the HVAC considerations and everything just to convert it back to a simple garage.

What really sucks about this approach, obviously, is that we wouldn't have a garage.